


Governmental Upheaval

by lightningrani



Category: Cosmere - Brandon Sanderson, Mistborn - Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Politics, Elend/Shan, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-05
Updated: 2015-07-03
Packaged: 2018-03-21 08:03:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3684504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lightningrani/pseuds/lightningrani
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Elend Venture hates being President, and hates being under his father's thumb. And then he comes up with a plan to get out of both of those situations. He has no idea of how it was going to backfire-and where it would lead him in the end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Based off a very random tumblr prompt which grew legs and became slightly more serious, though it's not obvious in the beginning.

Elend Venture was President of the United States, and he hated every minute of it.

He did his best to fight back against his fate, studying philosophy in school, doing his best to convince people he wasn’t fit for law school, and angering politicians with his ‘blunders’. But his father, eminent leader of the Republican Party, had a strong hold over the government, and he would get what he wanted.

And what he wanted was his son as President.

Straff was never able to follow his dream; Rashek, the first independent-party President ever elected in the country, was able to outmaneuver him with hints of scandals to prevent Straff from getting enough of the vote. And he was able to hold onto that position during Straff’s prime running years.

Now it was left to his son, who he had been shaping since birth for this future. And since Straff always got his way, Elend now sat in the Oval Office.

He sighed, pushing away the piles the paperwork sitting in front of him. Yes, there could be worse things, as his father always loved to tell him. He could be a poor philosophy graduate student, barely able to afford enough to feed himself properly. Instead, he was one of the most powerful men in the world, with a beautiful fiancée at his side.

Even with all this power, though, Elend was powerless. His father was pulling all the strings, ensuring that all the decisions which Elend made were in line with his conservative ideals, even if half the policies he had to agree made Elend physically ill. Hell, even his fiancée was arranged by his father; while Shan was a beautiful and wonderful woman, Straff had set up the relationship in order to ensure a strong political dynasty.

If there was only something Elend could do in order to free himself from this cycle. Some decision which would destroy his career as a President and break him free of his father’s political influence.

One of his aides—another one of his father’s flunkies—scurried in and handed in his agenda for the next day. He scanned it with a sigh. More diplomatic meetings with foreign dignitaries who Elend would just like to chat to but would probably offend with ‘his’ hardline stances, and more meetings with disgusting lobbyists. The lunch meeting was highlighted and underlined multiple times, probably by his father. Apparently he was supposed to meet with one of their main financial supporters during the campaign, Atium Corporations, in order to comfort the lobbyist that, yes, their company needs would be respected in legislation passed.

Elend’s finger hovered over that date. There was something he could do with this. Not at the lobbyist meeting; that would be too obvious and Straff would fix any ruffled feathers he would create. The problem with his last rebellions were his scale.

Maybe this time, he should do them in a more public place.


	2. The Fall of Atium Corporation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let the political chaos begin.

The press conference, of course, had to be held suddenly. Any preparation, and his father would try to stop it.

After years attempting to fool his father and being in politics against his will, Elend was a decent actor. So he knew how to act serious and slightly panicked without setting off too many warning bells. Walking briskly, like he was in a hurry to get somewhere, he found Kevoux, an old friend who Straff put into this position because of interfamily politics.

“Kevoux,” Elend said with a nod, and motioned for Kevoux to follow him. “I need to talk with you.”

“Yes, Mister President?”

“I have discovered something which requires a press conference as soon as possible.”

“From Kliss, sir?” Kliss was another one of his father’s flunkies; trained by the CIA, she served to watch out for threats which may directly affect him.

“From where else? I need a conference set up today. It is of the upmost importance.”

“Mister President, are you sure you want to go ahead of this without… consulting others first?” This was Kevoux’s indirect way of asking if Elend should wait for Straff’s approval.

Elend whirled around to fix Kevoux with the most powerful stare he could think of. “I am the President of the United States, and I can tell when something is going to irrevocably harm this great nation. Is that clear?”

Kevoux gulped. “Yes, sir.”

Elend acknowledged his agreement, and swiftly turned around, heading back for the office, trying to hide a grin. It seemed like his performance had worked well. Now he just had to wait until the press conference to set the next part of his plan into motion.

* * *

 

“My fellow Americans, I have discovered a great threat to our nation,” Elend began, scanning the handwritten pages in front of him. It had been difficult to convince the speechwriters to allow Elend to read something that they had not been able to proofread, dedicated to their job as they were. He eventually pretended to concede that he should allow one other person to look over it, and then handed the speechwriter one of the speeches he had planned for a future conference. The speechwriter was confused at how this was urgent business, but Elend assured him that he knew what he was doing.

If the speechwriter had seen what Elend was actually going to say, well, he made have had a stroke.

“I met with members of the esteemed Atium Corporation, a large food distribution company which has been responsible for providing sustenance for many Americans over its long existence. The information they provided me was innocuous at first glance. However, the CIA soon alerted me that this was all an elaborate cover-up. While it seems like Atium Corporations have been providing some of the safest foods on the market, causing the fewest cases of food-related illnesses in the country , it turns out that their food is extremely dangerous to eat. In fact, they have been spiking their food with an experimental drug, which has multiple unknown side effects. The reason for this action is at this moment still unclear, but there have been reports of horrible side effects after eating the company’s signature products, some ending in death. I urge all Americans to throw away all products made by the company and boycott any Atium Corporation products until further notice. Thank you. I will not accept questions at this time.”

The press burst into utter chaos, but the Secret Service did their job and protected the President from the mob. They did little to protect him from the utter political chaos happening behind the scenes. 


	3. Unexpected Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elend thought he got it in the bag. Alas, things were more complicated that he thought.

His father had been yelling at him for a few minutes now. Elend had stopped listening a while ago.

The political fallout had been immediate. His staff was swamped with phone calls from his supporters, wondering if Elend would turn on them in the future. Atium Corporations had started a smear campaign in response, implying that Elend had broken under the stress of such a high-profile job. Multiple allies had indicated in subtle or not-so-subtle ways that they no longer would support the Venture family in their endeavors.

Rumors of impeachment haven’t started to circulate yet, but Elend was willing to give them a few days.  Everything was going exactly to plan.

“Mister President?”

Elend turned around, surprised. A young woman with blonde curly hair stood in the doorway, holding a folder.

“Is this important?” Straff barked. “We are in the middle of a meeting.”

“Of vital importance. Mister President, if you could walk with me?”

Elend nodded politely and got up. “Of course, Ms.—“

“Allraine. I am your liaison to the CIA. We have stumbled upon some information with requires your attention. For your eyes only.”

“Father, if you will—”

Straff dismissed him with a wave and a snort. “Something inconsequential compared to the death of your political career. Come back when you’ve grown up.”

Elend gave him a bland, polite smile, and followed Allraine out of the room.

“Ms. Allraine, was it? I thought you were one of our diplomats?”

She gave him a bright smile. “My cover. No one expects the airheaded spoiled heir to be a spy, after all.”

“What is this information I need to see?”

“Soon. Somewhere more secure.” Allraine led him to a side room, a Secret Service member standing guard outside. When the door closed, she opened up the folder and handed it to him.

Elend frowned. “Atium Corporations? What about it? I thought it was your average capitalistic company.”

“I thought you would be less surprised by these results, Mister President, considering your speech. You predicted these results before any of us knew.”

His mouth went dry. “What?”

“Atium Corporations were spiking their food with an unknown drug. They billed it as a preservative, but on closer inspection, we were able to figure out the truth. Your actions saved many people before the problem became worse, Mister President. Congratulations. The public will love you when they hear the news.”

“Of course,” Elend said in a strangled voice. “Exactly what I wanted. Thank you, Ms. Allraine.”

“I suggest you peruse the file for more information. Your Secretary of the Press has been notified to hold a press conference soon, for the director of the CIA to announce this news. It would seem more credible out of her mouth. Now if you excuse me, I have other business to attend.”

Elend collapsed on a nearby chair when the door closed. How could this even be possible? There was no way he accidentally uncovered a conspiracy. The probability of that happening was miniscule.

And yet, it was true.

He groaned. His father would be so pleased with these results. Yes, his reputation would still need to recover—even if what he said was true, it could have been presented in more suave way—but less people would want to distance themselves from a President who uncovered a conspiracy of this size.

Sighing, he flipped through the file which Allraine left. They were exactly what she said they were: photographs, photocopied files, and transcripts all pointing to Atium Corporations’ guilt. There was no way to spin this in a negative light, not with this kind of evidence.

How could he mess up trying to ruin his career?

Elend closed the file, and sighed. Looks like he was back to the drawing board.

**

Looking at the files back in his office, he frowned. Was it just his imagination, or were other political families involved in the scandal? There was nothing concrete—if there was, well, he was sure Allraine or someone else would bring him the necessary information—but the number of references to businesses who were in the hands of his political ‘allies’ was worrisome. He made a mental note to look into it later.

“Mister President, you have a visitor,” an aide announced weakly, as someone strode through the door.

“Nice to meet you, Mister President. I am Ladrian, your new aide.” He gave Elend a big smile as he held out his hand. “Your father has appointed me to replace the previous advisor, after the last fiasco, and I was honored to accept such a position. Now, as for your new schedule…”

Elend began to zone out as Ladrian laid out his schedule. His father would pick out someone capable, after the last stunt he pulled. And sure enough, there was barely time for him to breath. He had to meet with the House Minority leader, and soothe the hurt feelings of some of his backers.

“Hasbro is very interested in meeting with you; there has been some unpleasant rumors surrounding their new toy line, and they want to ensure you that everything is going okay,” Ladrian added as he reached the end of the schedule. “It is imperative that this goes well, especially what happened with your last backer.” Ladrian smiled, and closed the folder. “Now, if you excuse me, Mister President, I need to ensure everything is running as I expect it should.”

Elend absentmindedly waved him away.  Maybe there was a way to turn things around. But he would need more information about this new toy line before he could proceed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So do you guys remember that meme going around about a president who didn't want to be president and did all these illogical things to try to get impeached but somehow ended up doing the right thing in the end? That was the reason this started.
> 
> But there's also plot coming too...


End file.
